Ford Taurus Acceleration Problem?

Question

My car has been having trouble accelerating recently. Saturday, as I was driving, whenever I hit the gas (after stopping at a stop sign or light), the car would sometimes stall for a second, then jump forward violently and then run normally for a few minutes. The internal car lights would dim for a few seconds and the radio would turn off. After the car starts moving again, several warning lights come on (breaks, ABS, battery) but would turn off after a few seconds. Also, the gas gauge would go down to "E" (car has at least 1/3 tank of gas) but would slowly go back to normal. This happened a few times. Got the car home later that night.

Now, when I try to drive it, the car starts normally (no warning lights), but after putting it in drive and giving it gas, it jumps forward a few times, then dies. Warning lights + Check engine light turns on. Can't drive forward at all anymore. Can be driven in reverse with no problem.

Any advice?

2002 Ford Taurus
~65,000 miles

I managed to get the car to AutoZone yesterday (stalled a couple times on the way there), and the battery tested bad, but I'm sure that's not the only problem.

@ remlap47 - I checked the battery connectors and cables when I took it to AutoZone, they're connected, but they look rusty and worn

@ nitroyes - the check engine light doesn't come on while driving, but does come on when it stalls (along with other lights), then turns off again when I restart it. I've had the car almost 2 years and it hasn't been wrecked . I'm the only one that drives it, so I don't think anybody's done anything to it.

I'm having it towed back to my home town tomorrow so my mechanic can look at it. I'll post back with the results.

Answer 1

I've never heard anything like this, but after some thought, I would suspect an electrical problem, possibly corrosion in the electrical system, like the power distribution box, or EEC-V computer. The transmission is electronically controlled by the computer, and with numerous lights and gauges acting up, I don't think it's one particular device, but rather a poor electrical connection.

Answer 2

ford had some problems with mlp sensor( manual lever position) its located on top of the trans and tells the computer what gear you are in, water intrusion into the connector may be sending weird info to the computer, this sensor is digital and dosent like moisture at all, but it sounds like a major electrical problem that i would take to the dealer cause i can think of a dozen things to look at, is the check engine lite on when the car is running, has it been wrecked, what condition is the battery in, how do the cables look, clean or corroded? has anyone done anything to the car, are the grounds clean and tight, are they even hooked up, since you can drive it in reverse how are the engine mounts, are they broken, if i was fixing this car i would have lots of questions for you

Answer 3

this is just a thought. because of the electrical nature of the problems you're having, I'd check first to make sure your alternator belt if good and tight. That shouldn't be a problem cause you have an automatic belt tensioner on that car. Other than that you might check out things like the battery's connections, and the ground connections. Just kind of hard to tell by a description alone. Good luck.